Julia James murder trial: Callum Wheeler is a 'angry, violent, sexualised man'

Julia James's dog, a Jack Russell called Toby, was found by her side

The jury has retired to consider its verdict in the trial of a man accused of murdering police community support officer Julia James.

Callum Wheeler beat Mrs James to death with a railway jack after "ambushing" her near her home in Snowdon, Kent, in April last year, jurors were told.

The 22-year-old has admitted being responsible for her killing, but denies murder at Canterbury Crown Court.

He was "an angry, violent, strange, highly sexualised man," the jury heard.

Summing up the evidence for the prosecution, Alison Morgan QC said: "There is no mental health defence available to him."

She said Mr Wheeler had "hit her head repeatedly" and "intended to cause her at least really serious harm".

'Ambush attack'

Ms Morgan continued: "The attack on Julia James was not a momentary and spontaneous act of violence by this defendant."

She told jurors it was "an ambush attack where the defendant intended to surprise his victim", which he had planned "over many days and weeks".

She said Mr Wheeler had been at the scene of the attack several times before and had been seen walking around the area with the railway jack, which he used to kill Julia James.

Mr Wheeler was pictured near Ackholt Wood carrying what prosecutors say was the murder weapon

Ms Morgan said: "He knew that people walked dogs in those woods, he knew that if he waited for the right moment there would be a lone female when nobody else was around, when he could commit this attack."

Minutes after the attack Mr Wheeler began thinking about how to cover up his crime, Ms Morgan told the court.

"The defendant was present and thinking, and thinking about covering up the blood that he could see next to her head, and he was thinking about how he could get away from the scene, how he could cover up the weapon."

He also searched for news articles about the investigation, she said.

On arrest, Mr Wheeler exposed himself to female officers and tried to masturbate in front of them, telling one member of staff that Mrs James "deserved to die", the court heard.

Evidence 'uncomfortable'

Defence barrister Oliver Blunt QC told the jury: "There is no dispute that he was responsible for the death of Julia James."

He said that through his not guilty plea Mr Wheeler effectively said he did not have the "level of intent required" and described evidence from a pathologist as "uncomfortable in the extreme".

The defence counsel told the court that Mr Wheeler walking around with the murder weapon the day after the killing did not "make a whole lot of sense".

He said while there was no mental health defence available to Mr Wheeler: "All I'm doing is drawing your attention to the oddity of his behaviour both before and after in determining whether or not you are satisfied so that you are sure that he had the requisite intent at 2:30pm on April 27 to either kill or to do really serious bodily harm."

Mr Blunt said: "This appears to be a completely motiveless, random, senseless, inexplicable incident."

He said the jury must decide if Mr Wheeler had '"the clarity of purpose on April 27 to form the intent to kill or do serious harm, or was it simply a question of doing some harm at the very least?"

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